I am a part-time medical social worker and have been an active consumer of managed care for the last 12 years, having been diagnosed with Type II Diabetes in 1992. I found it interesting, but rather ridiculous, that a doctor could cause me to have a stroke by any other method than by presenting me with the bill ["Med School Mania," September, FloridaTrend.com].

More residency programs will attract more physicians to settle near their practicum. Let's start with the residencies and then slowly add a school or three in a 15-year period.

Patrick R. Mullen
St. Petersburg

Amendment 3

Kudos to Florida Trend for bringing Amendment 3 to voters' attention ["Doctors vs. Doctors," September, FloridaTrend.com].

The real issue of Amendment 3 is whether we are ready to abolish freedom of contract -- the very foundation of a free-enterprise system.

If the government is empowered by a constitutional amendment to control the terms of one type of contract -- attorney-client -- what would stop it from writing the terms of other business arrangements?

Voters should be aware that the amendment would have no teeth in it until legislators criminalize violation. And the penalties would have to apply to both the attorney and the hapless client. Amendment 3 is bad for business.

Russell Troutman
Winter Park

Clarification
Sebastian River High School will randomly drug-test around 100 student-athletes. An October story suggested fewer.